Kenyans held in Nigeria arrive home after Goodluck intervenes

Eleven Kenyans held in Nigeria following the deportation of controversial businessman Anthony Chinedu have arrived home.

It took the personal intervention of Nigeria President Goodluck Jonathan to have the Kenyans leave after he waived the airport fees. They arrived at 4am.

On Wednesday, Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohammed announced that the Kenyan officials would travel to Nairobi after the conflict was "resolved".

“Greetings, good news for Kenya as all the Kenyans held up in Nigeria are on their way back home,” she wrote on Twitter.

“I wish to thank the Kenyan Mission in Nigeria for the help, care and consular support provided to the Kenyan citizens as we resolved the issue," she said.

Some of the Kenyan officials who spoke to the Nation on condition of anonymity said they had prepared to leave on Wednesday.

“We were supposed to leave on Wednesday night but we were told there were certain clearances the aircraft had to go through. We were not told how long it would take to clear but we were told we can’t board until it is done,” said one of the officers.

Another source from the Nigerian High Commission said the aircraft had been blocked by the Nigerian military until it clears the airport fees. However, the source could not divulge the amount.

The aircraft, the crew and the officials were detained on June 3 while on assignment to deport Mr Chinedu and two other Nigerians Christopher Nnanyelu and Oluwatosin Adebiyi.

On Wednesday, government Spokesman Muthui Kariuki said that President Goodluck had waived airport fees.

“We also appreciate the kind gesture of the Nigerian government for the waiver of the parking fees for the jet which had accumulated quite substantially,” he said in a statement.

Nigeria's First Lady Patience Jonathan is in the country. On Thursday, Dr Jonathan presented foodstuffs to refugees in Kenya.

The items, received by First Lady Margaret Kenyatta, were donated by the African First Lady Peace Mission.